If you have a Google account that you have not been using for a long time, you might want to start using it again or everything associated with it will be deleted.
According to Google’s latest blog post, the internet giant is going to delete your accounts, if your accounts have not been active in two years.
Google said starting December 2023, in case a Google account remains inactive or unlogged for a minimum of two years, there is a possibility that the account and all its associated data, including content stored within Google Workspace (such as Gmail, Docs, Drive, Meet, and Calendar), as well as YouTube and Google Photos, may be subject to deletion.
This policy change specifically pertains to personal Google Accounts and does not have any impact on accounts associated with organisations such as schools or businesses. Therefore, accounts belonging to educational institutions or businesses will remain unaffected by this new policy.
Google said they are doing this because:
Forgotten or unattended accounts often rely on old or re-used passwords that may have been compromised, haven’t had two factor authentication set up, and receive fewer security checks by the user.
Our internal analysis shows abandoned accounts are at least 10x less likely than active accounts to have 2-step-verification set up. Meaning, these accounts are often vulnerable, and once an account is compromised, it can be used for anything from identity theft to a vector for unwanted or even malicious content, like spam.
To keep your account alive, Google said you just need to do any of these:
- Reading or sending an email
- Using Google Drive
- Watching a YouTube video
- Downloading an app on the Google Play Store
- Using Google Search
- Using Sign in with Google to sign in to a third-party app or service
Furthermore, Google has clarified that if you have an active subscription linked to your Google Account, such as a Google One subscription, a news publication subscription, or an app subscription, this account activity will be taken into consideration as well.
They won’t immediately start deleting your accounts. The company said they will send notifications to both the account email address and the recovery email address (if one has been provided). This ensures that the account holder receives multiple reminders and opportunities to take action before the deletion occurs.
